In a semiconductor light-emitting device such as a light-emitting diode (hereinafter called “LED” when appropriate) and semiconductor laser, a semiconductor luminous element is generally sealed by a member (semiconductor light-emitting device member) such as transparent resin.
Epoxy resin, for example, is used as a semiconductor light-emitting device member. It is also known that a luminous wavelength from a semiconductor luminous element is converted by making the sealing resin contain a pigment such as a phosphor.
However, due to high hygroscopicity of epoxy resin, there have been problems of cracks caused by heat from a semiconductor luminous element when the semiconductor light-emitting device is used for a long time and degradation of the phosphor and luminous element caused by moisture infiltration.
Also in recent years, as the luminous wavelength is shortened, there has been a problem of dramatic decrease in luminance of a semiconductor light-emitting device because epoxy resin degrades and colors when the device is turned on for a long time or used at a high output level.
In view of these problems, silicone resin, which is superior in heat resistance and ultraviolet ray resistance, has been used as a substitute for epoxy resin. However, silicone resin does not yet have sufficient adhesion, transparency, and weather resistance. Meanwhile, inorganic sealants and semiconductor light-emitting devices using such sealants have been proposed as materials that excel in heat resistance and ultraviolet ray resistance (Refer, for example, to Patent Documents 1 to 5).    Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent No. 3275308    Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-197976    Patent Document 3: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-231947    Patent Document 4: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-33517    Patent Document 5: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-203989